400-450W PSU Roundup
by Christoph Katzer on November 6, 2007 4:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Antec PFC, Temperature, Fan Speed, and Acoustics
The heatsinks get far hotter than we have seen from similar models. The best comparison is the relation between the heatsink temperature and the exhaust temperature. The fan seems to be removing very little heat, since the temperature stays at an average level of 35°C at room temperature and 45°C in the heat chamber. The heatsink temperature is up to twice as hot at the exhausted temperature, clearly indicating the flaws with thermal management.
The installed 80mm fan wasn't the best idea, as we can clearly see from the temperature and fan speed results. A fan running at almost 3000 RPM should be enough to cool a moderate power supply like the 430W Earthwatts. The heatsinks simply are not getting enough cooling, and it all goes back to the overall design. The design of the heatsinks works best with a 120mm fan blowing directly at them. Antec chose to use an 80mm fan that moves air through the power supply in a very different fashion. The heatsinks do not get enough airflow, which means they can't dissipate heat, and they end up getting hot. It might be possible to design an effective cooling arrangement using an 80mm exhaust fan, but that would definitely require different heatsinks. Not surprisingly, the fan isn't particularly quiet either, especially in light of the low power output. We've seen much noisier PSUs, but those are often providing two or even three times as much power. At loads of around 430W, many PSUs are significantly quieter.
The heatsinks get far hotter than we have seen from similar models. The best comparison is the relation between the heatsink temperature and the exhaust temperature. The fan seems to be removing very little heat, since the temperature stays at an average level of 35°C at room temperature and 45°C in the heat chamber. The heatsink temperature is up to twice as hot at the exhausted temperature, clearly indicating the flaws with thermal management.
The installed 80mm fan wasn't the best idea, as we can clearly see from the temperature and fan speed results. A fan running at almost 3000 RPM should be enough to cool a moderate power supply like the 430W Earthwatts. The heatsinks simply are not getting enough cooling, and it all goes back to the overall design. The design of the heatsinks works best with a 120mm fan blowing directly at them. Antec chose to use an 80mm fan that moves air through the power supply in a very different fashion. The heatsinks do not get enough airflow, which means they can't dissipate heat, and they end up getting hot. It might be possible to design an effective cooling arrangement using an 80mm exhaust fan, but that would definitely require different heatsinks. Not surprisingly, the fan isn't particularly quiet either, especially in light of the low power output. We've seen much noisier PSUs, but those are often providing two or even three times as much power. At loads of around 430W, many PSUs are significantly quieter.
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zeroidea - Wednesday, November 7, 2007 - link
The Antec PS featured in this article is currently on sale at staples.com for $30.http://www.staples.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/S...">Link
SilthDraeth - Wednesday, November 7, 2007 - link
I know it falls outside of the 450Watt max, but it is still below the 500 watt barrier. I just bought the psu for a midrange system I built my mom, I know it works well, but I don't have the ability to test everything.One can wish right?
Noya - Tuesday, November 6, 2007 - link
If you look around (buy.com), the Corsair 450vx can be had from $51-61 pretty regularly, and at that price it's untouchable. I must say I've had one for about two months and haven't had any problems with it.smthmlk - Tuesday, November 6, 2007 - link
Can we have a full list of caps in each unit? Noting the primaries is nice, but what about the others? Thanks.Talcite - Tuesday, November 6, 2007 - link
Thanks for finally putting up O-scope readings, it's quite nice to see them. One thing I'm concerned about though is the lack of explication or analysis.For example, is the entire o-scope range 200mV in the 12v readings or is it one division? Also, there's a number of strange spikes in all the o-scope readings. I'm pretty familiar with the 450VX o-scope readings (mostly from other sites) and I haven't noticed any spikes of that nature in their readings. It probably isn't, but is the equipment faulty?
Thanks for putting the readings up anyways though, they're a nice addition.
Super Nade - Tuesday, November 6, 2007 - link
Those strange spikes are probe noise. If the probe is coupled incorrectly, you will see this artifact. This cold be due to any number of factors like EMI for instance. Following the ATX guideline on using 0.1 uF output coupling caps will minimize this to a great extent.MrOblivious - Tuesday, November 6, 2007 - link
You have to look at the sampling time on the readings to compare between sites. Different sampling times will make the traces appear a bit different.phaxmohdem - Tuesday, November 6, 2007 - link
I just recently built a rig for a buddy using a Thermaltake PurePower (or ToughPower.. can't remember) 480W Unit and it works like a champ powering a Core2 Quad Q6600 CPU, 2GB RAM, 2HDD's, two Optical Drives, 8600GT, TV Tuner and a few fans. (Wish I knew about the Corsair PSU when I spec'd that system out).But yeah, Unfortunately most people equate Watts to overall quality.... not unlike the MHz war of days gone by. Power supplies are one of the hardest components to convince people to spend extra on for some reason. FFS, electricity is kind of the basis of the whole dam computer!
Eventually it ends up as "Oh well. Go ahead and get that 600W $30 power supply and let me know how that goes for ya. I could use a good laugh, and don't say I didn't warn you."
strikeback03 - Tuesday, November 6, 2007 - link
Maybe Anandtech should go ahead and list the weight of each PSU. That has long been used as an estimate of quality.jonnyGURU - Tuesday, November 6, 2007 - link
Not any more. Topologies have changed to the point where you can have very light quality units and very heavy crap. Weight is NOT a factor.